French Circuit next test for flawless Marquez

May 17, 2014 - 12:00:00 am

PARIS: Marc Marquez’s rivals are aiming to take advantage of the uncharacteristic layout of the Bugatti Circuit at Le Mans and unpredictable weather conditions as they seek to halt the Spaniard’s early-season domination at the French MotoGP tomorrow.

Defending champion Marquez, who penned a two-year extension with Honda through until the end of 2016, has won all four races this campaign - a victory tomorrow would see him match Italian great Giacomo Agostini’s five straight wins to open the 1972 season.

However, the 21-year-old sounded a note of caution, acknowledging there would likely be times when things wouldn’t go his way.

“From now onwards, I must think that there are circuits where we won’t be able to win.

When we get to this level, we think we can win everything but we’re going to have to start managing things,” Marquez told AFP on the back of his triumph at the Spanish Grand Prix.

Marquez has finished on the podium in 20 of his 22 MotoGP races, notching up ten victories to date but has yet to triumph in France.

He finished third in his debut at Le Mans a year ago and will need to find a way to combat a circuit that is often plagued by wet, chilly conditions and renowned for its stop-start nature where the majority of the four-kilometre track’s 13 turns are performed at low speeds.

With that in mind the performance of his bike will come under close scrutiny during braking sections, while attaining maximum grip coming out of the turns is also likely to be crucial.

Despite finishing on the podium in all four races this term Dani Pedrosa, who’s second in the standings, finds himself already 28 points behind Honda teammate and compatriot Marquez. AFP